Monday - April 12, 2021
We got up at 7:00 am, showered, finished packing, and left the house by 10:00. We are starting on a trip to the southeast United States and to visit with Scott's family. Today was a sunny, warm day. We stopped at the Ozark rest stop and ate chicken salad, crackers, and baby carrots for lunch. We had almost gotten through Little Rock on I30 when we had a blow out on the left trailer tire. Same tire we have had 2 previous blow outs on. It wasn't safe to pull over on I30, so we drove to the first exit (only a few hundred feet) and into the parking area of a gas station. This was a bad part of Little Rock to have to stop in. Before we could call roadside assistance, a homeless man with a shopping cart full of stuff asked if he could help us. We told him we had help on the way and contacted roadside assistance. The person that came was driving an old, beat up pickup truck and his pants kept slipping down. Not exactly someone that gives you confidence. He finally got the trailer jacked up and the rim off, but the tire had wrapped around the axel of the trailer. He tried to convince Mike to give him money to go get a tool to help get the tire off, but I told Mike not to give him any money. The assistance man and another homeless person were finally able to get the tire off, using a hammer. Mike gave the homeless man a few dollars for helping us. We got the spare on, then went to the nearest WalMart to get a new spare. The only trailer tire they had was not the right size, but we bought it anyway just in case we needed something. We got to camp at Lake Chicot State Part a little after 7:00 pm. When we got into our site we discovered that the water hookup was too far for our hose to reach. We filled the fresh water tank some and called it good for the night. A ranger came by and said that she would loan us a hose the next morning. (She never came back by our campsite the entire time we were there.)
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| On the road, again! |
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| Sunset over Lake Chicot |
There was a beautiful sunset over the lake. We were in site 125 next to the lake. Mosquitoes were bad so we weren't able to sit outside. We had chili that I had cooked at home for dinner. After the long day we were really glad to have dinner ready for us. After dinner, we called it a night pretty early.
Tuesday - April 13, 2021
We had a good night's rest, the campground was quiet and dark. I got up and around about 7:00. It was cool and nice so I sat outside watching the lake and wildlife while drinking coffee. The couple camped next to us loaned us their hose so that we could hook up the trailer to the water. They were a really nice couple from Pine Bluff. It was nice to have water in the trailer. We sat around camp most of the day. We walked to the visiter center then on part of a nature trail until it became too muddy. While on the trail we saw a snake and a fox.
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| Trailhead |
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| Beginning of the trail before it got too muddy |
After our hike, Mike walked to the fishing dock by the campground and fished a little but had no luck. We drove to Lake Village to try and find a spare tire but found out that dealers are having a hard time getting tires and wheels. We did fill the car up so that we would be ready to leave on Thursday. We sat out side the rest of the day because it was so nice in the shade. There was a pretty sunset again.
Wednesday - April 14, 2021
We slept in this morning since it rained all morning. After lunch we walked 1.75 miles around the campground, then fished a little while. Neither of us had any luck fishing. We both took showers in the B camp area. The showers there were new and very nice. After our showers we had left over chili for dinner and went to bed early.
Thursday - April 15, 2021
We got up at 6:45, broke camp, and ate breakfast muffins in the car. We stopped in Greenville, Mississippi, at a WalMart to try and get a trailer tire, but had no luck. We also tried at a Tractor Supply, but they didn't have one either. Finally found the correct sized tire at a Gateway Tire (they only had one left in stock). It was a nice day for driving and we had no problems. We got to the KOA in Lillian, Alabama about 5:15. This was about 30 minutes west of Pensacola, Florida on Perdido Bay. After we got camp set up we walked to the dock and beach of the KOA.
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| Bridge over the Mississippi River |
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| Mike on the dock of the KOA with Perdido Bay in view |
It was cloudy and misty but we still managed to sit outside a while before dinner. We had a nice campsite with a view of Perdido Bay. We went to bed early again. Driving is tiring!
Friday - April 16, 2021
We slept in again. It rained all morning. At 11:00 we went to the Shrimp Basket in Perdido Bay for lunch. This is the first time we have eaten in a restaurant since the pandemic. We had shrimp and it was very good. There was a leak next to our table and somehow I got the back of my jean legs wet. We tried to walk a trail at Tar Kiln State Park, but the trail was flooded. We walked a short boardwalk trail at another nature park, but it was very short. We drove into Pensacola, Florida to the Bay Bluffs Trail. This was a board walk that went from the top of the bluffs to the beach - about 1 1/2 miles. This was a good hike, but the water at the Gulf was dingy. Not a very good beach in our opinion.
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| The Burger King in Perdido Bay was on fire |
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| Frog on the rail of nature trail boardwalk |
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| Trailhead |
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| View of the Gulf of Mexico from the boardwalk |
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| Mary on the trail |
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| Selfie with Gulf in background |
On our way back to camp we stopped at a Publix grocery store to get supplies. It was a nice afternoon after the rainy morning. We had planned to go to the Naval Aviation Museum, but found out that you had to have a Department of Defense ID to enter the base to get to it or be with someone with a DODID. Bummer. Don't know why this is advertised as a major tourist attraction when most people can't access it.
Saturday - April 17, 2021
It rained a lot during the night I woke up early and had coffee and breakfast before Mike got up. After Mike got around we went to Mobile, Alabama (about an hour away) to the USS Alabama Battleship. We toured the ship, a submarine, and the small airplane museum. We are lunch in the car in the middle of the tour because of the rain. It took us about 3 hours to tour everything.
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| Posing in front of the big guns. |
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| A close up shot |
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| USS Alabama |
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| Entrance to the park |
When we got back to camp it started raining very hard. We both took showers in the KOA facilities which were pretty nice. When I got back to the trailer I discovered that we had a leak in the front of the trailer by the foot of the bed. It must have leaked for a while because the paneling was rotten in a small spot. We put waterproof rv roof tape over the paneling by the leak since we couldn't fix the outside in the pouring rain and it rained the rest of the evening. We will have to fix this when we get home. (On a side note, when we got home it rained on and off for 3 weeks so it took a while before we were able to fix the leak. We washed the trailer, scrubbed all the seams, and then put sealant on all the seams. When I opened up the tape inside the trailer, nothing was wet or moldy. I was really surprised. We will leave the wall inside open for a few weeks to be sure it is dry then put heavy contact paper over everything.)
Sunday - April 18, 2021
We got up about 6:30 am, broke camp, and left about 7:30 headed to the Okefenokee Swamp area. We ate muffins and drank coffee in the car while traveling. We went east through the panhandle of Florida most of the day. It rained on and off most of the day. When we were less than 20 miles to Stephen C Foster State Park in Georgia we made a wrong turn. The road signs and Google were not very clear at the intersection. It was pouring rain and there was not a good place to turn around with a trailer. Finally after about 5 miles we came to a road we could use to turn around. Mike had to back onto the highway while I directed him. Before he backed on to the highway a truck came by going very fast that we barely saw in time for Mike to get stopped. Very Scary! After getting turned around we made it to the park about 4:30. This is a nice state park in the middle of the Okefenokee Swamp National Wildlife Refuge. Our site was number 44, had water and electricity, and a comfort station close by. The showers and toilets were new and nice.
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| Site #44 |
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| Another view of the campsite |
It kept raining so we had to set up camp in the rain. Later that evening it quit raining so we put up the awning and sat outside for a couple of hours. At dusk the mosquitoes got bad enough that it drove us inside.
Monday - April 19, 2021
We slept in then I made ham, egg, and cheese burritos for breakfast. We drove to the visiter center to ask about going on a tour boat, but all tours were booked for the next two days. Bummer! We walked the 3/4 mile boardwalk trail by the visiter center and saw lots of plants. The only wildlife we saw was an alligator in the small dock area by the visiter center.
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| Okefenokee Swamp next to the boardwald |
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| Mike on the boardwalk |
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| Mary on the trail |
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| Alligator by the visiter center |
When we were walking we decided to rent a boat for two hours for $40 (only $10 more than a tour) so that we could go up into the swamp proper. There was a small water trail leaving from the visitor center that lead to the Suwanee River that provides the water for the swamp. We had the boat from 11:15 - 1:15. While on the boat we saw 33 alligators, several turtles, and water birds. It was a beautiful, sunny day and we really enjoyed the boat ride in the swamp.
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| The river and swamp from the front of the boat |
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| Our 'tour guide' for the day |
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| A beautiful day in the Okefenokee |
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| A view of the swamp |
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| Lots of lily pads |
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| A small side trail we took |
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| The biggest alligator that we saw |
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| A turtle and alligator on the same log |
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| One of the water birds we saw |
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| Blooming lily pads |
After getting back to camp we ate lunch then drove to the Suwannee River Sill. On the way to the sill a man told us there was a black bear by the side of the road up ahead. We were able to spot the bear and were able to sit in our car and watch it tearing up a log to find termites. The bear even picked up the log at one point and flipped it over. It was a lot of fun watching this.
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| Best shot of the bear |
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| Park sign as we headed back toward camp |
When we got to the sill we saw 8 more alligators. This was a really fun day. When we got back to camp we cooked Hobo dinner and steamed broccoli for dinner. We planned to star gaze later, but the mosquitoes were too numerous for us to sit out.
Tuesday - April 20, 2021
We slept in today and it rained early in the morning. Later in the morning we drove back to the Suwanee River Sill. We saw a wild turkey on the way there and saw several alligators and many types of birds at the sill. We even saw a hawk catch a snake in the canal. We saw a spoonbill among other types of birds. On the way back to camp we saw a wild hog and three deer.
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| One of the deer we saw |
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| Sign for the refuge |
We walked the boardwalk by the Trading Post again then got ice and repacked the ice chest. We ate lunch then took a short walk in the campground.
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| Yellow lily pad by boardwalk trail |
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| White lily pad |
It had gotten too hot and muggy to walk far. After our walk we cleaned the trailer and car before taking showers. We sat outside for a while and saw a great horned owl. Then we heard what sounded like a cat and discovered that it was a cat bird in the bush by the trailer. Before long we had to go in because of the gnats and mosquitoes.
Wednesday - April 21, 2021
We got up early, had coffee and breakfast, then left camp about 7:30. The mosquitoes swarmed us very badly while breaking camp, but luckily didn't bite. We got gas in Fargo then headed toward Charleston, South Carolina. It was a sunny, good driving day. We got to the KOA that was 30 minutes north of Charleston about 2:15. It was an okay spot to camp for a few nights. We had leftovers for dinner then called a day.
Thursday - April 22, 2021
It was cool this morning, around 40 degrees. After breakfast we drove 30 minutes to the visiter center parking garage in Charleston. We walked toward the Battery, stopping at Pooghan's Smokehouse for lunch. We both had smoked chicken, slaw, and potato salad with leftovers for dinner. After lunch we walked to The Battery then back through Waterfront Park.
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| Rainbow Row |
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| Mike on the wall by the Battery |
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| Mary with beautiful Charleston houses in background |
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| More Charleston houses |
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| The "Pink House" |
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| Pineapple Fountain at the Waterfront Park |
We got ice cream on the way back to the car. We walked a total of 5 miles. It was a sunny, cool day - perfect for walking in the town. We got back to camp about 3:00. This was a very good, relaxing day.
Friday - April 23, 2021
We slept until almost 8:00 this morning. It was so cool that we had to get out the little electric heater. After breakfast we drove 1 1/2 hours north to Congaree National Park. When we got to the visiter center we had a picnic lunch then got information in the center. The only part open was a place to ask for information and to get trail maps. The museum and theater are still not open. We walked 2.9 miles on the board walk trail by the Visiter Center. It was a self-guided trail with a pamphlet we got at the VC. At the Weston Lake overlook we saw three snakes on one log, four turtles, and one bass.
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| Sign at the park entrance |
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| Mike on the board walk |
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| A picture of the swamp |
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| Mary on the trail |
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| There are three snakes on this log - largest is a cottonmouth |
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| Weston Lake |
We were finished with the walk by 1:45 and got back to camp at 3:20. I washed clothes and we both showered before having leftover Pooghan's for dinner. It was a good stay in the Charleston area.
Saturday - April 24, 2021
We got up early and left the camp by 7:11. We used Waze for directions which turned out to be a mistake. In Charlotte it tried to put us on an Express that was for 2 axle vehicles only. It was raining hard, I was driving, and I had to go right quickly, and slowed down as I did this. I'm glad that we weren't rear ended. We took I85N with Waze still trying to route us to an Express. We finally got on the right road. It rained all day. We put trash bags around the front of the bed to keep leaks from getting it wet. We stayed at the Charlottesville, Virginia KOA which was 4 miles off of Highway 29 on a steep curving road. The location was nice. It it hadn't been raining we would have walked on the nature trail. We bought fried chicken at a gas station to have for dinner. When I tried to use my VISA it was declined. I had to call to get it straightened out. We got to the KOA at 4:15, extremely tired, but glad we had no other troubles.
Sunday - April 25, 2021
We got up at 6:30 and got on the road to Harrisonburg/Shenandoah Valley KOA so we could drop the trailer off. It was a nice driving day. The road from the Charlottesville KOA to I64 was beautiful, taking us through the Blueridge Mountains. We arrived at the Harrisonburg KOA by 9:00 am and left the trailer in storage for 11 days. It was a little hard backing the trailer into the storage spot because the ground was slick from all of the rain. We got to Scott and Cristin's house at 11:45; in time for lunch. We grilled drumsticks and vegetables for dinner. Elli and Oscar were still at Beth's house until Monday. The adults sat up visiting until 11:00 pm. Mike and I slept on an air bed in the basement. It was nice to get to stay in the same house with them.
Monday - April 26, 2021
Scott went to Beth's and picked up Elli and Oscar before lunchtime. We just stayed at the house all day getting ready to go to the lake house we had rented. We ordered Mexican take out for dinner. It was just a low key, but good day.
Tuesday - April 27, 2021
We got up by 7:30 am, packed the cars, and left the house at 11:30. Mike and I stopped at a McDonald's in Fredericksburg for lunch. We got to the house on Smith Mountain Lake at 4:30 pm and Scott, Cristin and the kids were already there. It is a nice, large house with a double decker dock and a large yard. There was a library that even had children's books. Mike and I slept in the master bedroom on the first floor, Scott, Cristin, and the boys slept upstairs, and the girls slept in the basement. The boys fished a little from the dock, but didn't catch anything. All of the kids played by the water for a while.
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| Elli, Hunter, Aslynn, Oscar on top level of dock |
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| Elli on dock |
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| Aslynn on dock |
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| Elli, Aslynn, Hunter, and Oscar playing in water |
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| The kids had a lot of fun playing in the water. |
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| Oscar and Mike on the lower part of the dock. |
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| Oscar trying to catch a fish. |
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| Hunter and Oscar fishing |
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| Beautiful sunset |
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| Elli and Aslynn enjoying the sunset. |
We fixed chili for dinner. It was a nice, warm day and a nice evening at the lake.
Wednesday - April 28, 2021
After breakfast I took Mike and Scott to the marina to pick up the pontoon boat that Scott had rented for four days. It was a nice, warm day. Perfect weather for enjoying the lake. After the guys got back to the house with the boat, we packed lunches in ice chests and everyone went for a ride. After lunch Mike and Scott went fishing but had no luck.
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| Mike and Scott in the pontoon. |
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| Everyone enjoying a ride on the boat |
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| Oscar and Hunter |
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| Mary with Aslynn and Elli |
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| Hunter and Cristin |
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| Lunch break |
The house came with a canoe, a paddle boat, and two kayaks. We tried them out, but none were good to use. The paddle boat was too difficult to paddle for the kids and the kayaks and canoe were too tippy. Scott took the boys out in the canoe then let them out on the dock. After letting the boys out, Scott was bringing the canoe back to the ramp area when the canoe rolled over on him. That was the last time the canoe was taken out. I helped each of the kids use a kayak and I used one once. They were just too hard to keep upright.
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| Scott with 3 of kids on paddle boat |
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| Mammy watching Aslynn in the kayak. |
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| Scott in canoe with Hunter and Oscar. |
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| Hunter and Elli enjoying the water. |
After all the outdoor activities, we grilled hot dogs to have with the left over chili. We played some games then called it a night.
Thursday - April 29, 2021
Today was another great weather day for being at the lake. The kids spent most of the day playing in the water. Mike and Scott went out fishing, but had no luck. Scott took turns taking the boys and girls out in the pontoon so that they could fish. They didn't have very much luck fishing, but did catch a couple of small blue gill.
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| Aslynn excited to catch a fish |
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| Elli caught a small fish |
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| View of the dock from the pontoon. |
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| Elli and Aslynn as we head back to shore. |
When not in the water, we played a few games of corn hole. The house furnished some yard games for us to enjoy.
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| Elli cheering Scott and Mike in cornhole game. |
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| Aslynn throwing the bag. |
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| Hunter has a turn. |
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| View of the house from the dock area. |
We had grilled pork chops for dinner and then had an early night.
Friday - April 30, 2021
While Mike and Scott were out trying some early morning fishing, the kids and I attempted to set up the badminton/volleyball net. We finally got the net set up somewhat and tried playing badminton, but it was too difficult for us. We tried volleyball and had some luck with that until Oscar hit the net while serving and the net fell down. We gave up on it after that. It was too cool to play in the water so the kids and I made chocolate chip cookies. We made 48 cookies and they almost all got eaten before we got back to Scott and Cristin's house on Sunday.
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| The kids with all of the cookies we baked. |
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| Another shot of the kids and cookies. |
The kids took turns going out on the pontoon and fishing again and had just a little luck fishing. It was very windy, almost too windy to be able to fish. The electricity at the house was off for a couple of hours this evening because of the wind. Luckily, Mike and Scott had finished grilling the drumsticks and vegetables before it got dark. We ended up eating dinner in the dark.
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| Mike and Scott teaching the kids how to play pool. |
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| Mike showing the kids how to make a shot. |
After dinner when the lights came back on, the girls had a party set up for us. We played some games and danced to music. Overall this was a very fun day.
Saturday - May 1, 2021
This day was cool, but not nearly as windy as Friday. The kids had more luck with fishing. Mike and Scott took the boys out then Scott and I took the girls.
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| Elli relaxing on the pontoon. |
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| Elli said "Now this is vacation life." |
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Scott trying to help Aslynn catch a fish.
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| Finally had luck! |
The kids had fun building sandcastles in the small beach area next to the dock.
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| Scott and Elli bringing the paddleboat around to put away. |
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| The kids had a lot of fun building sand castles. |
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| Mammy and Elli |
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Hunter, Mary, Mike, Oscar, Aslynn, and Elli our last night at
the lake. |
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| Beautiful sunset |
Later in the afternoon, Scott and Cristin took the pontoon back to the marina and I picked them up. We had leftovers for dinner then cleaned up the house and got things ready to leave the next day.
Sunday - May 2, 2021
We got up early and left the beach house by 9:30 am. We made it back to Scott and Cristin's house by 2:30. The traffic heading back to Alexandria was terrible. When we got back we got everything unloaded and just rested. We had a really fun time at the lake house.
Monday - May 3, 2021 through Wednesday - May 5, 2021
We didn't do much these days. Scott had to work each day and the kids did school work. Cristin was having them finish the end of term standardized tests. Mike and I walked on Tuesday and Wednesday around the neighborhood. We walked about 2 1/2 miles each day. One evening the kids set up a 'carnival' for us. After dinner we all had fun playing the games.
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| Hunter, Oscar, and Aslynn playing games |
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| Hunter won that game! |
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| Oscar picking out his prize. |
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| Elli, Hunter, Scott, and Oscar at the carnival. |
On Wednesday I got a message from the owner of the lake house. She said that there was a coffee stain under the coffee pot that we would have to pay for. It ended up costing us our $500 deposit. She tried to get us to pay more, but we refused. I think her pot burned the new, white countertop so we shouldn't have had to pay, but we had no evidence. On a nicer note, Scott gave me a bracelet for Mother's day. These were our last full days in Alexandria.
Thursday - May 6, 2021
Mike and I got up, took showers, then packed our car to be ready to leave later in the afternoon. We walked to the CVS pharmacy to get me some Campho-Phenique for the fever blister I was getting on my lip. We ate lunch at the house then left for the Harrisonburg/Shenandoah Valley KOA where we spent the night after picking up the trailer. We got to the KOA for the night and got camp set up. Our site was so short that we had to unhook the trailer, but that was okay. It was a pretty day, good for driving and setting up camp. It is always hard to leave after a visit, but we had a really good time.
Friday - May 7, 2021
Mike and I slept until 7:00 am and left camp by 8:30. We decided to take a noninterstate highway over the mountains. It was a very pretty drive, but was very curvy and steep. It made me a bit nervous because we had no cell service most of the time. It rained a lot while we were driving, but fortunately the trailer didn't leak. We got to the Huntington/Foxfire KOA in West Virginia about 4:00 pm, set up camp, then did a little bit of walking. We heated up a can of soup for dinner, then called it a night.
Saturday - May 8, 2021
We got up at 7:30 am and left camp by 8:30 am after having coffee and breakfast. We took I64E to the Bluegrass Parkway to the Western Kentucky Parkway then some smaller highways to Lake Malone State Park in Kentucky. We had nice weather and were at the campground by 3:30 pm.
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| Campsite #12 at Lake Malone State Park |
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| Another view of our campsite |
We walked some then I fixed chicken Alfredo with canned chicken, green peas, and cheese and corn on the cob on the side for dinner. We were able to sit outside more than any other place because the weather was nice and there were no mosquitoes.
Sunday - May 9, 2021
It rained on and off all day. We had planned to do some hiking on the trails here, but it was too wet and muddy. We did walk around the campground a couple of times when the rain stopped.
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| The trailhead for the lake trail - too muddy |
We both took showers then called our Moms for Mother's Day. Scott and Eric both called while we were sitting in the trailer reading. We drove to the picnic area, beach, and boat dock of the lake. There is not much to see at this state park. Most people come here to fish in the lake.
Monday - May 10, 2021
We left camp at about 8:15 am heading for Missouri. This was a good driving day with no rain or high winds. We got to the Big Spring Campground on the Current River in Missouri about 3:00 in the afternoon. This campground has electricity, but no water hookups or sewer. It took us a while to find our campsite because I couldn't remember the number and we had no cell service. There was no place to check in with a ranger. We finally found our site and got camp set up.
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| Campsite #224 |
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| A view of the campground - not many people here |
After setting up camp we walked a trail to the river and a little by the river. After that we walked the loop around the campground.
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| Current River |
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| Enjoying the hike by the river |
We sat out a while watching some small, migrating birds feeding on the flowers of some trees. We went in around 5:30 because it had already gotten very cool out. We had leftovers for dinner then called it a night.
Tuesday - May 11, 2021
The last full day of our trip. We were both up fairly early, drank coffee, and had breakfast before driving to the Big Spring area. This spring puts out a lot of water and is very pretty.
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| Big Spring |
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| All the water from the spring |
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| Mike by Big Spring |
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| Mary by Big Spring |
We hiked 1.25 miles on the Slough Trail next to the Big Spring then drove to the Visiter Center in Van Buren. The visiter center had trail maps, but not much else. We ate lunch at a burger place in town, got ice cream and headed back to camp.
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| The slough of the Current River from the trail |
After getting back to the campground we hiked 1.25 miles on the Chubb Hollow trail beside and above the river. We saw a lot of wild flowers, including a yellow lady's slipper. This is the only lady's slipper I have ever seen blooming. I was very excited to see it.
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| Mike on the Chubb Hollow Trail |
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| We saw a lot of Columbine flowers by the trail |
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| Yellow Lady's Slipper |
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| Mary on the trail |
After our hike we drove out highway Z to the end of the pavement then headed back to camp. We ended up staying in the trailer after 4:30 because it had gotten cloudy, windy, and cool. This was a very fun day and was a good ending to our trip.
Wednesday - May 12, 2021
We were both up by 6:30 am and on the road by 7:30 am. The weather was nice so it was a good driving day. We stopped at the store at Marble, Arkansas to get lunch. We ended up sitting there for a while. because a man told Mike traffic was stopped because of a wreck. After getting back on the road we made it about 10 miles and then had to sit for about 15 minutes waiting for the highway to be cleared. Other than that we had no trouble this day and made it home by 1:30 pm. We were totally unpacked by 3:00 pm. After a rough start, we had a good trip - traveling for a total of 4326 miles.
